For years, leaders have been asking me how to motivate people. Regardless of whether you’re talking about large teams or small teams, sales teams or project teams, the answer is the same. You can’t motivate people.
Motivation comes from within and people are either self-motivated or not. This is one of the main reasons why only a handful of people respond to sales promotions or contests. Only those who are motivated by money will respond, while the rest will not.
The most effective means of motivating people for better performance and better results is to motivate them. Unlike inspiration, which comes from within, inspiration comes from others. The dictionary defines inspiration as, “to have a stimulating or beneficial effect, or to arouse a particular feeling.”
We – as leaders – inspire people by who we are, what we do, or what we have done.
Why try to be more persuasive? Here are some notable benefits of being an inspirational leader:
- it evokes an emotional response
- It creates a desire to accomplish or achieve something
- It sparks the imagination of what’s possible
- it builds trust
- it creates excitement
- it creates hope
- it creates admiration
- it breeds respect
- This makes people want to emulate us
When people are motivated, they aspire to reach new heights/goals and resolve to overcome obstacles, challenges and fears. They start dreaming big and hope again that they can achieve those dreams. And when people are inspired by you, they strive to emulate you, they strive to be respected by you, and they become more willing to align themselves with your passion, vision, or purpose.
As you can see, the impact of being persuasive is significant. Of course, the bigger question is how to be persuasive. What turns a leader into an inspirational leader? Here are five strategies for becoming a more inspirational leader:
- Never miss an opportunity to share what you are interested in. People are attracted to and respond to leaders who are passionate about something. When a leader is passionate, people will follow and be inspired by him.
- Use stories to make your point and paint a picture. People connect with stories and analogies, and when told effectively, will evoke an emotional response. Stories can be very inspiring.
- Share past challenges you have overcome. This doesn’t have to be a major life-changing challenge; It can be any kind of physical, mental or emotional challenge that you overcame that changed your life. People are inspired by those who overcame adversity.
- Set an example of high integrity. Do what you say you’re going to do. Be present on time. Return phone calls and emails. Complete projects on time or ahead of schedule. And don’t be afraid to let people know when you go out of your way to do what you said you would do. People are inspired by leaders who earn their trust and respect by their actions.
- Let others know what matters to you. Get clear about the values that matter most to you. Reflect throughout the day on whether your actions are consistent with the values you say you hold. Leaders who live their values inspire people. (Conversely, saying one thing but doing another is not very inspiring.)
If you want to take your team to higher levels, forget about trying to motivate them and instead, focus on becoming an inspirational leader.
